Intangible
by Persnickety-Badger
Summary: The story of an engineer who would be a hero, a ghost who once was a princess, and the great task which was laid upon them. A novelization.


**Author's Note:** Hey, listen! Thank you so much for choosing to read "Intangible." Spirit Tracks was a very special game for me, as it was the one which first hooked me onto the amazing Legend of Zelda series. Everything, from the epic boss battles to the sometimes frustrating, always rewarding puzzles went beyond what I could have ever expected from a little handheld game. What really impressed me, however, was the amazing story behind the gameplay, which was also the reason that I am writing this right now. This will not be a page full of the game script, though. The story will still contain the main story arc, though it is full of little backstories and plot enhancers that will make "Intangible" a fresh tale for both veterans of the game and curious newcomers. Now, without further babbling, here comes the first of these plot additions, the prologue!

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><p>Aboda Village was barely on the map. Not to say it scarcely existed; it did, but it was quite literally so tiny and hidden away within its walls of rolling sand dunes that one could hardly realize he was there until he was standing right in the middle of it. For those who could find it, though, the place was like a little paradise. The ocean came forth from the south, with its slow waves contently lapping up, and occasionally spitting out, the seashells which dotted the shore. Twisted palm trees sat just out of reach of the hungry waves, and beyond them, sand dunes sported a layer of tall golden grasses and sea oats. Indeed, Aboda Village's nickname, "The Hidden Rupee of New Hyrule," was well-deserved. Except, of course, on days such as this.<p>

Storm gales riled the normally placid waters and buffeted the palm trees until they bent backwards. Torrents of rain soaked the ground and pounded against the limestone houses which were scattered amongst the dunes. Inside one of them, a villager hummed cheerily to himself as he waited out the storm. A large easel held a canvas in front of him, and his paintbrush moved across its surface, leaving behind trails of bright colors. Although Hylians were known to be a long-lived race, the man was old even by their standards, and a cane rested against the chair he was sitting on. He smiled as he completed a particularly complex pattern on the canvas, which mimicked the stone walls of a castle.

"Perfect."

_Splat._

"Drat."

A single drop of water had fallen from the ceiling and right onto the middle of the almost-finished painting. Grumbling to himself, the man slowly got up and dragged the heavy easel and chair away from the leak, which was quite difficult to do with one hand also grasping a cane. Coming to a stop after a grueling two feet, the man sat back down with a satisfied grunt. He picked up the paintbrush again and prepared to dip it into a new color.

_Knock, knock._

'_Hm,' _the man thought to himself. '_Those raindrops sure sound heavy.'_

_Knock! Knock! Knock!_

'_And there sure are a lot of them.'_

_KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK!_

The man put his paintbrush to the canvas and sighed. This weather was really making it difficult to concentrate on his soon-to-be-masterpiece.

"NIKO!"

The man jumped, causing his paintbrush to leave a messy streak on the canvas. Unless his memory was failing him, raindrops did not call his name.

"NIKO! GET YOUR BUTT OVER TO THE DOOR UNLESS YOU FEEL LIKE SWABBING ALL THE DECKS IN NEW HYRULE!"

Gasping with recognition, and taking the speaker's threat quite seriously, the man hobbled over to the door and began nervously fumbling with the lock.

"MOVE IT!"

Finally unlatching the rusty lock, the man swung the door open and hastily saluted the soaked figure fuming in the doorway.

"Q-Queen Zelda," Niko stammered. "I'm so sorry! Please come in!"

The woman was just about as old as Niko, though she was not nearly as unsteady as he was. Both her hands were wrapped around an odd, covered object, which she was careful not to hit against narrow doorframe as she stomped grumpily into the house. Though her face was partially hidden by a hood, her blue eyes peered out as sharply as ever.

"Niko," she began impatiently, removing the hood which concealed a messy bun. "We have gone over this goddesses-knows-how-many-times. I don't care what my lineage is and I don't care about what some dusty old traditions say my name's supposed to be. When you met me I was Captain Tetra, and I am _still_ your Captain Tetra. Nothing has changed except that now I wear a tiara. Got it?"

"Yes, Miss Tetra!" Niko exclaimed obediently, striking a salute again.

"Good." Tetra said, rolling her eyes slightly as she finished removing her cloak. In spite of her prickly exterior, she could not help cracking an amused smile at Niko's perpetual enthusiasm. He had never really changed from the young, keen newbie who would leap at any opportunity to prove his worth to his captain and her crew. He was always the little kid of the group, forced to do nearly all of the menial labor involved with running a pirate ship (at Tetra's own orders, of course). But, no matter how many decks he swabbed or piles of dirty clothes he faced down, he would _never_ turn down a job.

'_Which is why I've decided to come to him," _Tetra contemplated. Her thoughts were promptly interrupted by Niko's voice.

"So, Miss Tetra, it sure has been awhile, hasn't it?" Niko piped up, half-directing, half-shoving Tetra into a chair at a small table. Sitting down also, he continued. "Why, I haven't seen you since… well… you know…" Niko trailed off uncomfortably.

"Link's funeral?" Tetra finished for him. Niko nodded stiffly, turning his head slightly so that his former captain would not see him quickly wipe his eyes. Tetra waited silently for him to collect himself. Oddly enough, for her, the mention of her husband's death never really saddened her. He had lived a long life, and they had both accepted that they were going to pass on eventually. Link had just… gone first.

After a moment, Niko sighed and began again. "Yeah, that. So… what brings you here, Miss Tetra? You're usually not one to visit without a reason. And I don't mean that in a bad way!" Niko quickly asserted. "In fact, that one of the reasons you're such a great Quee- I mean, Captain!"

Tetra smirked again. "Nah, Niko, maybe I just decided to drag myself through a pounding typhoon just to pay my old swabby a friendly visit?" She paused for a second, realizing how her words sounded, before adding somewhat guiltily, "Well, actually, there is something."

Tetra lifted the wrapped object in her arms slightly. "See this?"

Niko nodded, his eyes glinting curiously. Tetra continued. "This is something really, really important. A treasure of sorts." Ding. She had just said the magic word. Niko leaned over the table as far as he could, trying to discern what the object was.

"Treasure?" He asked breathlessly. "Where did you find it?'

"It came from… a house in a small village." Tetra spoke carefully. "It belonged to a family… but they're all dead now. They were killed… over this." Tetra nodded toward the hidden object. Niko's eyes widened.

"That's terrible!" He exclaimed. "So this thing must be pretty valuable, then. Are you going to keep it in the Royal Treasury? It'll be safe there, for sure."

"I don't think so." Tetra mused quietly, closing her eyes, seeming to brace herself for a moment. "Niko," she snapped suddenly, focusing her full attention on her former shipmate. "What's the number one rule about hiding treasure?"

Niko sat up straight, remembering how his captain had drilled him just like this long ago.

"Hide it by not hiding it!" He answered automatically. "Conceal it, but also don't! There's no better place than in plain sight, Miss Tetra!"

"Exactly!" Tetra replied. "And what other place fits that description more than," she paused to gesture around. "…The Hidden Rupee of New Hyrule?"

Niko sat up abruptly, nodding vigorously. "I'll do it, Miss Tetra! You can count on me! I have a safe in the back room, so we can just stuff it in there!"

"No!" Tetra cried out, shattering the previous mood of excitement. Niko's smile vanished.

"I mean," Tetra continued in a much softer voice. "This can't be put away in a safe. It's… well… let me show you."

She got up from the table, walking over to where Niko waited, his face shadowed with confusion. When she was next to him, Tetra began to unwrap the object, until finally, it became visible. Niko gasped sharply, and then looked up at his captain.

"Miss Tetra…" He whispered.

"…So, Niko," Tetra spoke, meeting Niko's bemused gaze with her unflinching eyes. "Are you still up for this?"

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><p>So, what do you think? Please review! Constructive criticism and comments will be welcomed. Flame writers will be forced to scrub all the floors in Hyrule (Oh no, a cd-i reference!). Thanks!<p> 


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